Day 2 is complete

  • Level: 21
  • Small Blind: 6K
  • Big Blind: 12K
  • Ante: 2K
  • Chip Average: 448.2K
  • Remaining: 49
  • Entries: 732


The WPT Montreal Day 2 is now over, and of a starting field of 732 entries, 49 players have made it through to Day 3. Maduka Meragal is the chip leader, and will come back with 1,423,000 chips tomorrow.

Full player reported chip counts and seating assignments will be made available shortly.

Day 3 will begin at 12pm tomorrow.

Chip leader Maduka Meragal (1,423,000)

Maduka Meragal

Photographs from the last level of play in Day 2 

Some counts at the break

  • Level: 19
  • Small Blind: 4K
  • Big Blind: 8K
  • Ante: 1K
  • Chip Average: 255.3K
  • Remaining: 86
  • Entries: 732


With the players on their last break of the day, we took this chance to do some chip counts. Here are the current chipleaders:

  1. Maduka Meragal – 733,000
  2. TJ Ulmer – 669,000
  3. Jeremie Damret – 648,000
  4. Jamil Wakil – 636,000
  5. Samuel Chartier – 608,000
  6. Mukul Pahuja – 574,000
  7. Jonathan Jaffe – 560,000
  8. Sheraz Nasir – 557,000
  9. Mathieu Gagniere – 518,000

A few other counts:

  • Alexandre Lavigne – 34,000
  • Andrew Frankenburger – 112,000
  • Antonio Esfandiari – 220,000
  • Kevin MacPhee – 347,000
  • Marc-Andre Ladouceur – 390,000
  • Mike McDonald – 192,000
  • Philippe Plouffe – 350,000
  • Scott Jeremy Clements – 235,000
  • Vincent Jacques – 183,000
  • Xuan Liu – 182,000
  • Yann Dion – 306,000

Some photos leading up to the bubble

Zinno out on the bubble

  • Level: 18
  • Small Blind: 3K
  • Big Blind: 6K
  • Ante: 1K
  • Chip Average: 244K
  • Remaining: 90
  • Entries: 732


After an extended period of hand-for-hand play, Anthony Zinno was eliminated in 91st place in the 2014 WPT Montreal.

He started the hand with only 6K in chips. Antonio Esfandiari opened the preflop action with a raise to 12K from the button, the small blind folded and Anthony and Antonio were heads-up in the hand.

Anthony: Jack of Clubs 8 of Diamonds
Antonio: Ace of Hearts 5 of Spades

The flop came 3 of Spades 5 of Hearts 6 of Diamonds, the turn was the Ace of Diamonds to give Antonio two pairs and Anthony was drawing dead in the hand. The river was the 2 of Spades.

The rest of the players are now in the money, and judging by some of the small stacks in the tournament the first few payouts should come very quickly.

MacPhee doubles on the bubble

  • Level: 18
  • Small Blind: 3K
  • Big Blind: 6K
  • Ante: 1K
  • Chip Average: 241.3K
  • Remaining: 91
  • Entries: 732


In a preflop war between Kevin MacPhee (cutoff) and Brian Yoon (button), Kevin 4bet shoved his 176,000 stack and was snapped by Brian.

Kevin: 8 of Clubs 8 of Spades

Brian: Queen of Hearts Queen of Clubs

Kevin managed to turn a set on the King of Diamonds 3 of Spades 7 of Clubs 8 of Hearts 4 of Diamonds board, and now sits on a healthy stack on the money bubble.

Clements wins one

  • Level: 18
  • Small Blind: 3K
  • Big Blind: 6K
  • Ante: 1K
  • Chip Average: 236.1K
  • Remaining: 93
  • Entries: 732


Scott Clements has eliminated Brian Benhmou in 94th place, stacking a nice pot in the process.

Three short notes

  • Level: 17
  • Small Blind: 2.5K
  • Big Blind: 5K
  • Ante: 500
  • Chip Average: 231.2K
  • Remaining: 95
  • Entries: 732


There’s always a lot of activity come bubble time, and a few short stacks have doubled in the past 30 minutes while a few other players have lost big chunks of their stack to the point that surviving the bubble is now in question.

Some impressions on the tables we’ve been looking at:

  1. TJ Ulmer has notched up the aggression considerably and has chipped up accordingly, and has won his pots almost entirely before showdown.
  2. Brian Yoon is also playing quite a few hands, and made a pretty sick pot-sized value bet a few minutes ago holding just a 7-high flush.
  3. Alexandre Lavigne lost half his stack when he tried to take a pot with a healthy bet on the river only to be check called by his opponent, who held pocket 9s (good for middle pair considering the board that had run out).

Just 95 players remain in the tournament.

Liu rivers Clements

  • Level: 17
  • Small Blind: 2.5K
  • Big Blind: 5K
  • Ante: 500
  • Chip Average: 219.6K
  • Remaining: 100
  • Entries: 732


Sitting on 81,000 in the small blind, Xuan Liu 3bet her stack after Scott Clements opened to 11,000 from middle position. Clements, who started the hand with 187,000, made the call.

Xuan: King of Spades Queen of Diamonds

Scott: Queen of Hearts Queen of Clubs

Xuan was on the brink of elimination, until she paired her king on the river of a 8 of Clubs 6 of Hearts 5 of Diamonds 6 of Clubs King of Hearts board. She now has over 30 big blinds, and is in a good spot to cruise into the money.

Xuan Liu

Players are back: it’s bubble time!

  • Level: 17
  • Small Blind: 2.5K
  • Big Blind: 5K
  • Ante: 500
  • Chip Average: 211.2K
  • Remaining: 104
  • Entries: 732


The players in the WPT Montreal are now back from their dinner break and with 104 players remaining, the tournament is now in full bubble mode. There are just 14 players to be eliminated before the rest of those in the event are all in the money!

More counts at the Day 2 dinner break

  • Level: 17
  • Small Blind: 2.5K
  • Big Blind: 5K
  • Ante: 500
  • Chip Average: 211.2K
  • Remaining: 104
  • Entries: 732


We’ve covered the top of the leaderboard in another post, but since the dinner break is 45 minutes long, we had time to gather counts for some other players in the event.

Players with past success at Playground

  • Samuel Chartier – 555K – Won the High Roller this spring during the Spring Classic.
  • Vincent Jacques – 234K – 2nd place in the Canada Cup, eliminated in the famous four-way all-in hand.
  • Alexandre Lavigne – 121K – Final table of this event in 2013, has won or run deep in several other big events at Playground Poker Club.
  • Serge Cantin – 271K – Final table of both the 2012 ad 2013 WPT Montreal.
  • Bill Kontaratos – 429K – has final tabled several Playground events with buy-ins greater than $1000.
  • Alim Perales – 166K – won a big re-entry event during the Montreal Festival in 2013.

Other notable stacks

  • Antonio Esfandiari – 257K
  • Mike McDonald – 285K
  • Todd Terry – 387K
  • Yann Dion – 276K
  • TJ Ulmer – 419K
  • Philippe Plouffe – 257K
  • Scott Clements – 177K
  • Xuan Liu – 100K
  • Max Greenwood – 268K
  • Kevin MacPhee – 175K
  • Brian Yoon – 250K

Top stacks at the dinner break

  • Level: 17
  • Small Blind: 2.5K
  • Big Blind: 5K
  • Ante: 500
  • Chip Average: 211.2K
  • Remaining: 104
  • Entries: 732


While the players are enjoying a 45-minute dinner break, we’ve tabulated the current leaderboard. Here are the top 7 stacks at the moment:

  1. Mukul Pahuja – 734,000
  2. Jeremy Damret – 555,000
  3. Samuel Chartier – 554,000
  4. Alexis Urli – 517,000
  5. Jonathan Jaffe – 508,000
  6. Gianluca Cedolia – 468,000
  7. Marc-Andre Racine – 426,000

We are now only 14 eliminations away from being in the money.